The Marauder Tales
by Black Snowdrop
Summary: This is a story of the time of the Marauders, of a school trying its best to withstand the outside pressures of a darkening world and Voldemort's rising influence, of a haven for wizarding children to grow up in safety with the freedom of their own choices. Friendships are born and torn down, relationships are developed and tested and allegiances change in the ever changing society


_September 1970_

As soon as she stepped inside the train, the noise of the platform quietened to a pleasant babble in the background. Grinning from ear to ear, Erica Snowdrop pulled her trunk along the corridor as she searched for a compartment. She listened to the edges of the multitude of conversations that were filling the train as she passed: old friends greeting each other after a summer away, fellow first years scrambling alongside older students, searching for their place, just like Erica. From several compartments, she could hear the whizzes and bangs of magic being performed and the appreciative laughter that followed. From inside others, she heard dramatic retellings of Quidditch matches and duels and other holiday adventures. She could hear some haughty voices laughing about first years and something along the lines of the fun that would be had with them. Erica frowned to herself, resolving to remember those voices and make them regret their intentions.

She had to walk the length of two carriages before she found an empty compartment. Five or six heaving attempts later, she managed to get her trunk safely stowed away. She dusted off her hands and flexed her sore fingers. Now all she had to do was go back for Anastasia. She turned towards the doorway but an insistent rap on the window stopped her mid-step. She spun on her heels, half expecting to see some angry sixth or seventh year about to yell that this was their compartment. Instead she saw her mother's brilliant smile and the same blue eyes as Erica's own, gleaming with emotion. Erica beamed back and raced towards the nearest doorway.

"Thought I'd follow you," her mother said as met Erica in the doorway. She lifted a small, black cat basket into Erica's arms. "I think that's everything," she added, looking back at the empty trolley as if expecting to see something else magically appear. "I can always send it up if you've forgotten anything," she added in a quieter voice.

"Yeah," Erica answered quietly. Suddenly it was as if she was six years old and being left at her aunt Josephine's again for the first time, watching her mum walk down the garden path and disappearing. She was very aware that the train she was standing in was about to carry her thousands of miles from her mother, further than she'd ever been before. That knowledge brought bubbles of painful emotion up into her throat, each one popping with a sting. "Mum…" she whispered, not knowing what she wanted to say.

That didn't matter. Her mother moved, her arms folding themselves around Erica and pulling her to that warm, familiar space in the crook of her neck and shoulder. Her mother's scent washed over her, a pleasant concoction of blueberries, lavendar, raspberry and mint. Erica clung to her with one free arm, reaching up to hold her mother's hair, the same dark brown hair that Erica and both of her older brothers had inherited.

"I'm going to miss you, my precious girl," her mum whispered in her ear. "But this is going to be an incredible journey for you. You are just taking the first steps on the best adventure of them all." She held Erica closer for another brief second and then pulled away. In the background, Erica heard a whistle going off. Not now. Not yet. She wanted to say. But she didn't take her eyes off her mother.

"I'll really miss you Mum," she said, feeling like that scared six-year-old again. "I love you."

"I love you too," her mum answered, giving her one of her massive, open smiles. "You'll be fine. I know you will. You've got your brothers too. They'll look after you." She squeezed Erica's hand. "Not that you need it. You're my brave girl and you always will be."

Erica nodded, not trusting herself to speak in case she started to cry. She did have her brothers, Grayson and Tyson, who were in fourth and sixth year respectively. But her mum was right, she reminded herself. She would be fine. She was excited to go. It was just hard imagining her mother being left alone on the platform.

"Go back to your compartment," her mum whispered. "I'll watch you until you go." Another whistle sounded in the background. A station porter moved forward and closed the door between mother and daughter. "Go on," her mum urged.

Erica returned to her compartment quickly and settled her cat basket next to her trunk. She could hear her kitten, Anastasia, snoring inside it. When she took a seat next to the window, her mum was on the other side of the glass waiting. She placed a hand on the glass. Erica mirrored her action.

"Have a great time," her mum mouthed as the train began to move. She lowered her hand from the window and waved. Erica waved back as the train moved away, the distance carrying her mum out of sight among the crowds. Erica kept waving until the train disappeared completely for the station. Rows of houses and chimneys replaced her view and soon the train was rushing full steam ahead. Erica finally looked away from the window.

She was alone in the compartment for ten minutes before someone else arrived.

The glass door slid open and a brown skinned girl with darker brown hair stepped into the entryway, lugging an enormous case behind her. She straightened up, her features flushed, catching her breath as she did. "H-hi," she panted, "can I sit in here with you? Everywhere else is full already."

Erica looked up at the girl. "Of course," she said. She eyed the trunk behind the girl. "That's enormous." She then stood up. "Probably easier to lift with two of us, yeah?"

The girl blinked before beaming at her. "Definitely, thanks!" She yanked the trunk further inside.

"That's all right," Erica giggled a little. "You look like you dragged that thing down the whole train."

"Feels like I did," the girl agreed with a tired laugh of her own.

"So did I," Erica told her as they both looked down at the trunk.

It took them a moment to get a good grip on either side but they managed to load the trunk onto the opposing luggage rack. Once they had, the girl flopped into the window seat opposite Erica's. She wiped at her face and smiled out of the window. The sunlight caught her dark blue eyes and lightened them so they seemed to twinkle. She then looked at Erica with another grateful smile. "I'm Phoenix Raleigh, by the way," she said offering her hand towards her. Erica shook it without hesitation,

"Erica Snowdrop," Erica said before Phoenix's surname began to click. Something she'd read in the Daily Prophet recently. Something to do with a scandal. "Raleigh as in…?"

Phoenix visibly cringed. "The Raleigh family that just broke the engagement with the Lestranges, yeah," she said as she rubbed her wrist repeatedly with two fingers. "That was my older sister, Serafina. She…. She decided she didn't want anything to do with that family anymore. So she ended it this summer. I know it was all over the Daily Prophet." She sighed, her fingers rubbing harder over her wrist. "My sister had her face splashed all over the paper. Everyone's talking about it. They think she has someone else and that it's all a big affair and everything." Her frown line deepened in her forehead. "All she did was change her mind."

"I know," Erica sympathised.

"Imagine if she'd waited until the wedding day? Or even afterwards? That would have been so much worse if you really think about it-" Phoenix continued, her cheeks growing darker and darker with flush.

"Of course it would!" Erica cut in. "It'd have been an enormous scandal. Your sister did the right thing."

Phoenix didn't speak for about a minute. When she did, it was soft-spoken and halting. "You… really… think so?"

Erica's face scrunched up. "Yeah," she answered. She stretched her legs out in front of her, her feet either side of Phoenix's now. "My family… let's just say we know exactly what the Lestrange family is like and, let me tell you, your sister had a lucky escape." She declared fiercely.

A slow, tentative smile crept upon Phoenix's face. Her eyes shone as the smile began to build into a grin. Suddenly she let out a bark of laughter. "I know, right? I don't know what Serafina ever saw in that Rodolphus Lestrange. I only met the guy a handful of times but he creeped me the hell out!" Phoenix passionately declared. Her voice hardened, lowering in volume as her eyes swept the empty compartment, as if checking they were alone. "Sometimes the way he looked at me was just… I dunno, like he was staring into me."

"Rodolphus," Erica repeated. Yes that name was definitely familiar. Tyson had written to her about some skirmishes he'd had with Rodolphus over the years. She was sure that Grayson had gotten involved at least once. But then it was hard to remember all of the letters that they had sent to her. They mentioned a lot of people within them.

"And his brother Rabastan's not much better." Phoenix added, her eyes flickering upwards and out the window. She leaned an arm against the window, her fingers tapping the glass as she did. "He should be king of the smirks, always laughing at everything I did like it was a joke. Snide bastard. I can't believe he's going to be in our year."

Erica shoved her fist against her mouth to muffle the laughter that escaped. She thought about what her mum would say if she could hear Erica's new companions casually swearing. Not that it would have been drastically shocking. Grayson and Tyson had taught her the worst swear words before she was ten years old.

"I hope I'm not in his house," Phoenix finished, her shoulders sagging, eyes still on the rolling houses and city buildings that they passed.

"So not Slytherin then," Erica answered.

"Yep. I think Ravenclaw or Gryffindor would be good. Although Hufflepuff's common room is next to the kitchens," Phoenix mumbled. She smiled at Erica. "I think the people in Hufflepuff would be a lot nicer as well. But I don't know where I'll end up." She continued tapping at the window. "Where do you think you'll end up?"

Erica let out a small huff of breath as she looked over at Phoenix. "Gryffindor, probably. Both my brothers ended up in there and Mum's always saying we're always too bold for our own good." Talking about her mother brought that stinging sensation back to her throat but she continued. "Always getting into trouble with it."

"Your brothers are still at the school?"

"Yep. Tyson's in fourth year. Grayson's in sixth. What about your sister?"

"This is her fifth year. She's in Slytherin. So that's not going to be fun with her, having classes with her ex and that snake, Black."

Erica racked her brains. The Blacks were a well known wizarding family but they had several branches so placing their members was something of a challenge. Fifteen was also a really young age for people to be engaged at though it was pretty standard with pureblood marriages, her mother always said. They always tended to flaunt the engagements too which had come back to bite the Lestranges hard now, Erica thought with some amusement. She returned her thoughts to the Black family. "Which Black is it that's in her house?" she asked after a moment's thought.

Phoenix wrinkled her nose. "Bellatrix. She just… ugh, you know… you'll soon see what I mean. I mean she is such a dis-" Phoenix's words were cut off by the opening of the door.

For that one second, both girls stiffened up, eyes widening in identical panic. Erica half expected to see the figure of Bellatrix Black stood there, demanding to know why two first years were bitching about her. Not, of course, that she even knew what Bellatrix looked like. But she figured she'd imagine a dark haired, bitchy looking girl and she'd probably be close. But it wasn't Bellatrix stood there. It was two people, a red haired girl and a dark haired boy whose hair hung like greasy curtains around his face. They looked like first years. Both of them peered into the compartment, taking in the space. The red haired girl had luminous green eyes and they trained on Erica instantly.

"Do you mind if we sit with you?" she asked. "Everywhere else-"

"It's fine," both Erica and Phoenix said at once, automatically. They exchanged grins of relief as the two fellow first years pulled their stuff into the compartment. Once their luggage had been stowed, the red head sat next to Phoenix and the dark haired boy sat next to her, leaving Erica as the sole occupant of the opposing seating area.

"Thank you," the red haired girl said with a bright smile. Her hair was long, worn as a plait. It dangled over her left shoulder and it hung all the way to her waist. "My name's Lily," she said placing a hand on her heart before pointing it at her companion. "This is Severus."

"Hi," Erica greeted.

"Nice to meet you," Phoenix echoed.

Severus said nothing except nod his head vaguely at both of them. Erica figured that he was shy or something. She didn't press anything further.

"And you," Lily said, looking between them. "Were you guys talking about something? We didn't mean to interrupt," she explained.

"It's all good," Phoenix said, "we were just talking about houses. Do you know where you might be put?" she asked.

"No," Lily admitted, "but I don't know an awful lot about Hogwarts yet. This is all pretty new to me. "

"Ah," Phoenix said warmly. "You're muggleborn then?"

Lily flushed. "I guess it's obvious, huh?"

"Nothing wrong with being muggle born," Erica told her emphatically.

"Yeah, despite what some people say," Phoenix said darkly.

Lily looked towards Severus who looked in no rush to join in the conversation. "Yeah… Sev's already warned me that people might make fun of me being muggleborn."

Phoenix lowered her arm from the window and made a fist, punching her other hand. "Yeah and you can tell them to shove it."

Lily laughed a little. "So there's the four houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin?"

"Yep," Erica said. She began to tell Lily about each house, helped by Phoenix. They explained about how Gryffindor was for the bold and boisterous where many a troublemaker had learned to hone their craft and pull daring stunts, Hufflepuff was for the loyal and hardworking where people could find long lasting friendships and a ton of support as well as endless study groups and midnight picnics, Ravenclaw was for the wise and studious where riddles and brainteasers were considered excellent exercise for the mind and then you had Slytherin, the house for ambition and determination where you could be pushed to achieve your dreams even if it meant learning to step on other people to do it and also working out what it was that you wanted. Of course, Phoenix had pointed out to Lily that many Dark Wizards and Witches came from Slytherin. Not all of them but a lot.

Although it turned out that Phoenix's family had had many members in different houses over the years. She had cousins who had been in Gryffindor and Hufflepuff, her parents had been Ravenclaw and Slytherin and a lot of her aunts and uncles had been spread across the house board too. Erica would bet that the Lestranges would have loved to have learned that when marriage negotiations and background checks had begun. She wondered if the Lestranges might have eventually pulled from the match themselves eventually. It certainly would have looked better on them to do so. Being dumped was not something that a proud family like them would just take lying down.

So talk turned onto what house they thought they would end up in. By this point Severus had not said a word but he shrugged when he was asked by Phoenix. Lily answered that she didn't know. She liked the sound of Ravenclaw. Before the conversation could continue, the compartment door slid open.

Two dark haired boys occupied the entry way. One of them had the messiest hair that Erica had ever seen. He wore glasses and a smug smile on his face. He'd already changed into his Hogwarts robes. They slid down his shoulder as he leaned against the doorway. His companion had changed into the shirt and trousers but had left the shirt untucked and had abandoned the tie. He was quite handsome with chin length black hair that curved around his face with a kind of elegance. His eyes were grey and full of laughter.

"Talking houses?" the boy with glasses asked as he stepped into the compartment fully. His friend followed, shutting the door behind him. He sat next to Erica.

"Come on in," Phoenix muttered quietly.

"I tell you, I can't wait for the Sorting," he said looking around. "Finally knowing what kind of team we're going to be on. It's going to be amazing. Well," the boy suddenly paused, "as long as it's not Slytherin of course." He looked around at them all. "I'm James Potter by the way."

His friend sighed in his seat. "My whole family have been in Slytherin," he declared, his expression souring rapidly.

James blinked. "Blimey, and I thought you seemed all right!"

That exclamation seemed to cheer his friend up and soon a confident grin took over his face again. "Then again," he remarked, "maybe I'll break the tradition. That'd be great. I'd love to see my parents face if they realised a Black got into a house other than Slytherin." Both Erica and Phoenix tensed, exchanging glances. It did not go unnoticed by the boy who rolled his eyes. "Yeah yeah, bow down in terror. I'm a Black. The name's Sirius, if you must know."

"The dog star," Erica mused.

Sirius gave her a bemused look. "Do a lot of star-gazing do you?" he asked. "Fantasize about my namesake do you?"

Erica huffed. "Oh yeah, all the time," she retorted. "I can't get enough of that tiny star." Phoenix laughed.

Sirius turned back to James. "Where do you want to end up if you can help it?"

Erica looked towards Lily and Severus who were eyeing the two boys with wariness and some exasperation. The boy James was now leaning against the door again, preening. He must be deluded, Erica thought, if he thought that made him look impressive. He straightened up at Sirius' question, puffing up his chest as he spoke. "Gryffindor!" he declared fiercely. "Where dwell the brave at heart! Like my dad."

"Sure, if you prefer brawn over brains."

At first, Erica looked at Phoenix, her gaze questioning whether Phoenix had heard it too. The identical jaw drop on her friend's face confirmed it. Both of them looked over to the corner where Severus Snape was still sat, arms folded, rolling his eyes and shaking his head at James. It was the first time they'd heard him speak. He had a silky snide to his voice. The effect of his words on the other boy was immediate. Red-faced and scowling, both of James' hands were balled into fists as he looked at Severus. He opened his mouth but it was Sirius who spoke.

"Where are you hoping to go seeing as you're neither?" he asked. Severus's features darkened. Lily's face reddened and a dangerous gleam shone in her emerald eyes. Phoenix threw Sirius a dirty look while James laughed appreciatively.

Meanwhile, Erica elbowed Sirius hard in the ribs. His hair swung with his face as he whirled in his seat. "What's your problem?" he demanded, rubbing his side.

Erica twisted in her seat, glaring as she did. "I'm allergic to dickheads. Go away."

"Leave Severus alone," Lily growled at both James and Sirius. "You're not as funny as you think."

"No one asked you to come in here and show off," Phoenix added with folded arms.

For a second, both boys seemed to be stunned. Sirius continued to glare and James was staring towards Lily as though she'd turned into a house elf. She stared back at him angrily before rising to her feet and opening the door behind James. He stepped out of it, backwards, still looking like he'd been confunded.

"Who's showing off?" Sirius argued back finally. "Nothing wrong with being in the right house," he added.

"The right house?" Phoenix echoed. "Sounds exactly like the kind of talk a Slytherin would say," she added.

"Guess you're not going to break the tradition after all," Erica added.

It was Sirius' turn to go red in the face. He stood up hotly. "Ugh, let's just go James," he said as he stormed out of the door. He pulled his friend along and soon their footsteps were disappearing down the corridor. There was a collective sigh from Lily, Erica and Phoenix. Severus was silent, slumping back against his seat.

"Ignore them, Sev," Lily said consolingly. "They're just a bunch of idiots."

"Black will probably end up in Slytherin just like the rest of his rotten family anyway," Phoenix mused. "So the jokes going to be on him if he doesn't want to go there. He already sounds like a snob." She then grinned at Erica. "I can't believe you called him that."

Erica smiled coolly. "I call them like I see 'em."

Lily smiled appreciatively over at her though she glanced over at Severus in concern. He lifted a hand as if to push Lily's concern away.

"I'm fine," he said quietly. "I've heard worse than anything those idiots can say," he said.

That did not reassure Lily in the slightest but no one said anything more on the matter for the rest of the journey.

It was already dark when the train pulled into Hogsmeade station. All first years were directed towards a hairy giant of a man with a large lamp. It wasn't hard to spot him in the crowd and so it was easy for them all to gather around him, out of the way of the other students. The man looked them all over with a big smile within his bushy beard.

"Welcome to Hogwarts, first years! My name is Rubeus Hagrid, I'm the Keeper of Keys and Groundskeeper at Hogwarts. Follow me and we're going to take a rather special route if I do say so meself." He grinned once more at them and beckoned them to follow him down a path.

It was a short walk though it was an incredibly dark one as they left the well lit area of the station. Huddling together, they stayed close to Hagrid and before long they reached the bank of a lake where a lot of little boats sat waiting for them. Hagrid turned and gestured for them to get into the boats, four at a time. Phoenix and Erica sat in the front of theirs with Severus and Lily behind them. To their dismay, they saw James and Sirius in a nearby boat with a sandy haired plump boy and a skinny brown haired boy who looked ill.

Once everyone was in, Hagrid climbed in a boat himself and the boats began to sail across the lake. Hogwarts rose up ahead of them, illuminated by hundreds of tiny lights in the windows. Sat atop of steep rocks, the castle looked magnificent against the darkening sky. Stars twinkled over the castle, adding to the majestic scene.

"Wow," Erica heard Lily breathe.

It was too short a trip across the water and Hagrid brought them up towards a set of stone steps. There, a tall witch with dark hair and green robes was waiting for them. She held a scroll in her hand and her other was adjusting the spectacles on her nose. She lowered her hand and observed them all silently as they gathered around her.

"Thank you Hagrid," she said curtly. Hagrid headed through the two large doors behind her and disappeared. "Welcome to Hogwarts," she addressed the students. "In a moment I am going to take you into the Great Hall and there you will be Sorted into your houses. The houses are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Once you are Sorted into your house, that house will become like your family, your team. It will be your responsibility to win points for your house and any triumphs you make in class or in extra curricular activities or general good behaviour will earn you points. However, any rule breaking or disrespect will lose you points. The house with the most cup at the end of the year will be awarded the House Cup. This is an esteemed honour and I do hope that you will do whatever you can to help your house be a solid contender for the prize. You will also have a head of house to which you should address any concerns, issues or grievances too. I am Professor McGonagall and I am the Head of Gryffindor House." Erica saw James and Sirius exchange an amused smirk.

There was a short pause during which McGonagall seemed to be listening for something. She then turned around and waved her wand. The double doors opened. "Follow me in a single line, please." As she walked, the students began to file into one line. Erica stepped behind Severus and Phoenix stepped behind her with Lily following in the back. They walked into a grand entrance hall, illumimated by torches. Two golden brown wooden doors stood wide open ahead of them and at last they entered the Great Hall.

It was just like her brothers had described it, Erica thought as she looked around at the hundreds of students, the dozens of candles floating in the air and the shifting clouds in the magical ceiling. She ignored the sea of faces staring at her at first until she'd looked her fill at the hall. Finally she lowered her gaze to the far right side. In the middle of the furthest table, she saw her brothers grinning and nodding at her as she passed. She smiled back and joined McGonagall and the rest of the students as they reached the front.

A great table ran the width of the room and high backed chairs were seated along it with one chair higher in the middle, edged with gold. A string of adults sat in those chairs. Te teachers, Erica realised. A silver haired wizard in purple robes and a tall matching hat, was watching her from the golden-edged chair and he looked along at the other students with interest. In front of the table stood a stool with a rather dirty looking hat with a tear in the brim. McGonagall stepped up next to it.

"In just a moment, you will be Sorted into your houses. When I call your name, you will come up here, sit on the stool and I will place the Sorting Hat on your head. When the Sorting Hat has placed you, I will remove the Hat and you will join your housemates," she explained. "But first, it's time for some wise words."

Erica, along with the other first years, all looked up towards the silver haired wizard. But it was the Hat that suddenly opened its brim even wider and began to sing.

Oh it was a long long time ago  
When Hogwarts here was born  
There were four clever founders  
And it's time to blow their horn

They set the school up to teach  
Each and every wizard child  
And what a horde of personalities  
From hyper to quite mild

But the founders all had different ideas  
For the type of kids they taught  
All their ideas were really quite  
Far ranging and so they fought

But then they chose the houses  
And so they all got to choose the traits  
Of which children they would prize  
And help determine their true fates

First there was Gryffindor  
A brave, wizard warrior  
Whose boldness and sense of mischief  
Would leap over any barrier

Then came good old Hufflepuff  
Not afraid of any toil  
You could travel the world, far and wide  
And not find one so loyal

Ravenclaw was studious and fair  
And wise beyond her years  
They say to gift her puzzles and riddles  
Would provoke such happy tears

Slytherin was the cunning one  
He was full of great ambition  
To preserve the pureblood families  
Became his lifelong mission

All these four set up the school  
And nurtured lots of skill  
For anyone can succeed at Hogwarts  
If they just have the will

The song ended and the hall burst into applause that took several minutes to die down. The first years joined in but nerves ran through them as thick as rivers and many of them began to glance at each other warily. Once the hall was silent, Professor McGonagall stepped closer to the stool and the Hat and began to unroll her scroll.

"Joanna Appletree!"

A chubby faced, strawberry-blond haired girl stepped out of the line of first years and approached the stool, looking as though she were going to her execution. She sat down and McGonagall placed the hat on her head. For a few seconds the Hat was silent.

"HUFFLEPUFF!" It suddenly roared, making the first years jump. Meanwhile the table to the near right roared in applause and cheers. A pink-faced Joanna gave the Hat back to McGonagall and practically sprinted over to her new housemates.

"Jonas Bastian!"

A tall, thin, Hispanic boy stepped up to the Hat. This time the Hat took a bit longer to decide for him before it yelled, "RAVENCLAW!" The table on the near left gave him a massive welcoming cheer.

"Arcadia Beneva!"

The girl that took the Hat next was as pale as ice with golden hair and grey eyes. She looked around the hall as though they were beneath her and this meant nothing to her. The Hat had barely been placed on her head before it pronounced her as, "SLYTHERIN."

"Andromeda Black!"

A great stillness went about the hall as a short, mousy-brown haired girl stepped confidently out of the line. She had some of the same proud features that Sirius had. Erica tried to recall if she was his sister or his cousin. Andromeda took the Hat onto her head and silence followed.

It followed for several long minutes. A great whispering rose up on the far left table.

Some of the other first years were staring around at each other. Was something wrong with the Hat? McGonagall didn't look that concerned. She simply watched Andromeda.

"RAVENCLAW!" The Hat suddenly boomed, taking everyone by surprise. This time two tables erupted with noise. The Ravenclaws welcomed a grinning Andromeda into their fold while the Slytherins talked in manic, hurried disbelief.

Sirius whistled over the noise. "Go Meda!" he shouted with the noise.

"That is quite enough!" McGonagall called to the noisy crowd. She looked to the next name on the list. "Sirius Black!"

Sirius swaggered forward with a massive grin on his face. He sat on the stool and waited for the Hat to be sat on his head. It barely touched him before yelling, "GRYFFINDOR!" Sirius whooped in triumph and the Gryffindors roared in welcome. The Slytherins, once more, began to talk in a frenzy. Erica tried not to grin as Sirius swept the hat off, did a magnificent bow, handed it to McGonagall and sauntered off to his new house. That was two Blacks in different houses within five minutes. She wondered what their families would have to say about that.

Joshua Byrne became the next Ravenclaw while Zoe Cacaros became a Hufflepuff. Lucas Calden also became a Hufflepuff.

"Alice Carver!" McGonagall called.

Alice was a tall girl for her age, she towered over some of the other first years. She had short dark hair that was cut messily as though she'd done it herself. She sat on the stool for a whole two minutes before the Hat decided she was a Gryffindor.

Rhys Calridian was Sorted into Slytherin. Isabelle Celeste, Dante Diggle and Lisa Elliott became Hufflepuffs.

"Lily Evans!"

Lily's face was a picture of anxiety. She looked at Severus then Erica and then walked up to the stool. Erica could see that she was trembling all the way. As she sat down, her hands gripped the stool in a vice like grip. The Hat was placed on her head. A minute or two passed in nervous silence until finally the hat spoke.

"GRYFFINDOR!" it roared.

Lily smiled widely and took the hat off, heading over to the cheering table.

After Lily, Adam Fletcher joined Ravenclaw. Alexandra Fyre was Sorted into Gryffindor. Natasha Grayne became a Slytherin, Geoffrey Harrison was put in Hufflepuff. Hilary Henri was placed in Slytherin. Ivan and Rosetta Isenweather were both Sorted into Ravenclaw.

"Rabastan Lestrange!"

Phoenix was right, Erica thought as she observed the brooding, shaggy haired boy that was stalking up to the stool, he did seem rather unpleasant. As the Hat was lowered over his forehead and eyes, he glared around at them all.

"SLYTHERIN!" The Hat declared. Just as sullenly as he'd arrived, Rabastian deposited the Hat and made off for his new house.

Ursula Lexington joined Ravenclaw.

Gilderoy Lockhart walked up to the Hat with a confident, cocky smile. He sat under the Hat grinning all the way, looking out around the rest of them while his fate was decided. When the Hat placed him in Gryffindor, he beamed, stood up and bowed like Sirius which caused the Hat to fall off. Several people around the hall laughed as he had to retrieve it for McGonagall before hurrying off to his house.

Louis Lordvark became the next Hufflepuff.

"Remus Lupin!"

The sickly looking boy from the boat sat down on the stool next. He had a lanky frame and sandy bangs that kept falling into his eyes. The Hat deliberated on him for about three minutes before it declared him a Gryffindor. He stumbled descending from the stool. McGonagall whispered something to him but he just nodded and hurried over to the Gryffindor table.

"Frank Longbottom!"

A broad shouldered young boy with nicely trimmed dark blonde hair took his place on the stool. The Hat touched his head then shouted, "HUFFLEPUFF!" making the poor boy jump. Frank happily joined the cheering Hufflepuff table.

Benjamin Mallard became the next Ravenclaw followed by a raven haired, Hispanic girl named Valentina Nieves-Rivera who was placed in Hufflepuff. Nathaniel Nott became the next Slytherin while a chubby blonde haired boy named Peter Pettigrew joined Gryffindor.

"James Potter!"

The cocky, messy haired boy from the train practically jumped onto the step next to the stool. He sat beneath the Hat with a grin for approximately thirty seconds before it yelled out, "GRYFFINDOR!" James punched the air and ran to join Sirius at the cheering Gryffindor table. He sat opposite Lily who suddenly looked less than impressed at her new company. Erica tried not to laugh at that as she redirected her attention to the Hat.

A boy named Isaac Pyrites was put in Slytherin next.

"Phoenix Raleigh!"

Phoenix swallowed and walked slowly to the Sorting Hat. She took deep, anxious breaths as she sat beneath the massive Hat. It hardly sat there for ten seconds before the Hat cried out, "RAVENCLAW!" and a surprised Phoenix climbed off the stool and hurried to join the Ravenclaw table.

Katrina Renwood became the next Slytherin. Nanaia Rivers was Sorted into Gryffindor.

"Severus Snape."

Erica heard Severus Sigh as he walked up to the stool and had the Hat placed on his head. The Hat sat there silently for about five minutes before it shouted out, "SLYTHERIN!" Erica glanced over to where Lily sat. She saw the disappointment on the red head's face. Severus, meanwhile, was expressionless as he got up to join his new house.

"Erica Snowdrop!"

Erica froze. She felt like she'd been punched in the stomach and a million butterflies were now loose in her body. Swallowing, she walked up towards the stool and sat down on it. It was warm from all the previous occupants. She held onto the edges, like Lily had done. There were only a few first years left but still, having their eyes on her felt very strange.

Hello there. The Hat's voice in her head made Erica physically twitch. My my you're quite the character aren't you? The voice continued, sounding more amused than anything. You have a mischievous spirit. You're not afraid to say what you think. Oh you're rebellious and determined. Those are some interesting qualities. Hmmm, so, so bold. You've got a bright mind and a lot of attitude. Well really, there can be only one place for you. GRYFFINDOR!

Erica heard the Hat yell the last word to the hall and cheers rose up from the Gryffindor table. Erica stood up, handing the Hat to McGonagall. She crossed over towards the Gryffindor table where Lily was already making space for her and waving at her.

"Hi!" she beamed at Erica as she sat down. Other housemates welcomed her with hellos and Erica's face flushed as she acknowledged them all.

"Welcome, Erica!" A tall red haired girl was sitting near the other first years. She leaned over to shake Erica's hand. "I'm Molly Prewett," she said. "If you need any help or anything, come to me."

"Thank you," Erica said as she looked towards the remaining first years.

Sybil Trelawney, a girl with long sandy brown hair, held back with a loose bandana, was stepping up to the stool. She wore glasses which magnified her dark eyes a little. She sat on the stool for about seven or eight minutes before the Hat declared her a Ravenclaw.

The last was a dark skinned girl with silky black hair. Jade Zabini was declared Slytherin and with that last Sorting, it was all over. As the last of the applause faded to silence, the wizard in the purple robes who sat in the tallest chair stood up. He looked around at them all, his eyes twinkling behind half moon spectacles.

"Welcome all to another year at Hogwarts! A hearty welcome, in particular, to our new first years! Before we begin our magnificent feast, I have a few announcements to make." He cleared his throat. "All first years should be warned that the forest surrounding our grounds is forbidden to all students. There many dangerous creatures lurking in there and your safety cannot be guaranteed should you choose to break the rules and go there. Not only will you risk serious harm to yourself or anyone that accompanies you but you will cost your house a serious amount of points as well as getting yourself in detention. So please avoid the Forbidden Forest." The man, (Albus Dumbledore - Erica realised) looked around the hall once more. "Our caretaker Mr Filch has also asked me to remind you that there is a list of banned objects that can be viewed in his office. If you should be found with any of these objects, you will lose points for your house and you may also receive detention."

A great murmur of amusement ran throughout the room. Erica saw a number of conspiratorial glances around her new house. The noise lingered for a few moments and then silence returned. Once it had, Dumbledore continued to speak.

"This year I will be introducing a dueling club to the school and it will take place in the Great Hall from seven o'clock in the evening to nine o'clock. Please use this opportunity responsibly or the club will be disbanded if people use it to mess around and harm one another beyond the usual dueling casualties." Dumbledore gave them a serious look. "Dueling is an important skill to have and may save your life one day. Therefore if anyone intends to come to the club just to harm people and not develop the skill, they will be banned from attendance." He added, his voice becoming quite severe for a second. "And that concludes our announcements," he then continued on in a much brighter tone. "Once again welcome to our new students, to our older students welcome back and now for the feast. Enjoy!"

He clapped his hands and a magnificent feast appeared on the tables. There were potatoes, roasted and boiled, various meats like chicken, pork and beef and lots of vegetables. Jugs of juices stood everywhere. Erica poured herself a big goblet of apple juice and loaded her plate with potatoes, beef, and plenty of vegetables.

Lily was staring around at the place. "This is incredible," she breathed. Her eyes fell upon the Slytherin table and Severus. Her smile dropped. "I hope he'll be okay," she said.

"Have you known him long? You two seem close." Erica voiced the question she'd been keen to ask since the train. Severus and Lily had that kind of private connection often noticed when you were new to a group of people who'd known each other a while.

"Known him about a year, I think" Lily said as she piled food neatly on her plate. She smiled at Erica as she spoke again. "He helped me realise I had magic and then we became friends. He lives a few streets away from me. My sister was having a go at me again for being a freak and-"

"Your sister calls you a freak?" Erica frowned, lowering her goblet. "That's nice. What a cow."

Lily chuckled a little. "I think she just wishes she had magic too. But she hasn't. She even wrote to Dumbledore, asking if she could come as well as me," she admitted. "He wrote back to her. He was really nice about it. But that just made her even more angry at me." Lily sighed as she finished. Suddenly her cheeks became as inflamed as sunburn. "I really shouldn't have said that. Don't tell anyone will you? If Tuney knew I had told anyone-"

"I promise I won't." Erica said. She couldn't help a slight snort though. "Tuney?"

"Petunia," said Lily. "Our parents liked flowers, especially Mum. Tuney's always saying how she was named the prettiest flower." Lily scowled a little. "As if being pretty is all that matters. Tuney just wants to marry someone handsome and wish when she's older. I don't really care if I get married or not. I just want to learn as much as I can about magic."

Erica smiled as she listened. Maybe it was easy for her having been born into a wizarding family and having been accustomed to magic all of her life but it was surprising listening to Lily marvel at it all. She immediately resolved to show Lily some of the best parts of having magic. Things that maybe Lily wouldn't know about yet, as a muggleborn. She knew there was going to be plenty of unpleasant things about their world too. She resolved to help Lily prepare for them as much as she could.

"Okay first of all, personally," Erica remarked, "I prefer lillies." Lily went pink and laughed. "Second of all, as for having a rich husband," Erica continued. "I'm not even going to think about that stuff yet. It sounds like your sister is trying to be all grown up. But calling you a freak just because she's jealous is not grown up. It's pathetic." She thought about Phoenix's sister's situation. Even in the wizarding world, there were still arranged marriages among the purebloods - inbreeding among themselves so that they didn't die out. It was stupid. There was nothing wrong with having some muggles in the blood. It didn't make them any less magical. But then that was just common sense, her mother would say, something that the purebloods seemed to lack.

Lily nodded sadly, bringing Erica's attention back to the conversation at hand. "Yeah but she doesn't see that. I don't think she's ever going to like me again."

Erica reached out and put a hand on Lily's back. "You never know." She tried to reassure her. Lily's sister sounded pretty mean so far but then Erica thought of the amount of fights and shouting matches she'd had with her brothers over the years. She still loved them even though they could be muppets and they'd forgiven her for her tantrums in the past. "Maybe she just needs more time." Erica offered.

"I doubt it. Tuney's always had a problem with me-" Lily began to say before they were interrupted.

"What'll take more time?" James asked from across the table. "Something wrong, Lily?"

"Time you learned to mind your own damn business," growled Erica.

James ignored her. Lily began to glare at him. "I wasn't talking to you Potter. This is private."

Sirius snorted. "Leave it James. They probably weren't talking about anything interesting anyway," he remarked.

As they boys began talking about Quidditch or something, Erica turned back to Lily. "Shame we're stuck with these clowns for seven years, am I right?"

Lily laughed, brightening again. "Tell me about it."

The rest of the feast passed pretty quickly. Too quickly for Erica's liking. But soon Dumbledore was bidding them all goodnight. He instructed the fifth year prefects to take charge of the first years and take them to their houses. The students rose up at once from their tables in a sea of black robes and sleepy, contented faces. Most of them headed towards the double doors leading back into the entrance hall.

"First years wait there!" A tall girl cried out from further up the Gryffindor table. "First years stay where you are!" Across the hall, identical shouts were being called as the prefects hurried over to the new first years. For Gryffindor, their fifth year prefects were comprised of a tall girl with chestnut hair and a clear complexion that reminded Erica of the icing sugar her mother used to over-use during her baking efforts. It contrasted her dark green, almond eyes. Her companion prefect was a dark skinned young man with dark hair that curled around his ears and handsome brown eyes.

"Hi guys," the girl greeted them all, "we'll just hang back here a moment and avoid the mad rush," she said with a quick glance over her shoulder at the progress of the mass exit from the hall. Students were crowding through it hurriedly. She turned back and looked over at the gathered first years.

"We've got the biggest climb to our common room so we'll conserve our energy eh?" the male prefect declared with a grin. "I'm Felix Shacklebolt and this is Rochelle Abbott."

"Hi," Rochelle did a small wave. "We're going to be your fifth year prefects. There are sixth year and seventh year prefects too and the Head Boy and Girl."

"Yeah so if you guys need any help or advice or if you're in any trouble, you can come to us if you don't want to take it to a teacher straight away," Felix said reassuringly.

"You'll get to know the other prefects in time but for now if you have any questions, you can come to us." Rochelle added.

Felix turned to look at the double doors. The crowds had already disappeared for the most part. "All right," he said to Rochelle, "let's go."

Felix wasn't kidding that the trip to Gryffindor Tower was one hell of a climb, especially on a full stomach. By the time they'd navigated the impressive and moving Grand Staircase as well as the string of corridors that led to the Tower itself, Erica was yawning every few minutes. Next to her, Lily was beginning to drag her feet as well. The two prefects led them along the last corridor until they reached a gigantic portrait of an overweight woman dressed heavily in pink. She was holding up an empty wine glass and admiring it.

"Password?" she asked without even looking towards Rochelle and Felix.

"Hinkypunks," Rochelle answered. The portrait door suddenly swung open. The first years stepped back a few steps. Felix looked back at them with an encouraging smile.

The Gryffindor Common Room was even brighter than her brothers' letters had led Erica to believe. From the drapes around the curtains, the many scarlet and crimson rugs on the floor and the dozens of seats, armchairs and the couch, it was like stepping into a world of red. Some of the older students had taken possession of the couch and armchairs, sat facing the blazing fireplace. Behind them, Erica recognised two tall boys sat either side of the chess board. They rose from their seats when they saw her too.

"Hey!" Her oldest brother, Grayson, built somewhat like a bear swept her up in his arms and spun her around. The world blurred into red streaks as Erica laughed. When he finally put her down, her vision straightened up. Grayson had survived the summer without their mother insisting he cut his hair which fell to just below his chin. Like Tyson, Erica and their mother, he shared their dark hair and blue eyes.

"Welcome to the club!" Tyson grabbed Erica from behind and spun her around. Once more dizziness swept over her and by the time he put her down, Erica was feeling very unsteady on her feet. "It was a no brainer really," Tyson said as he turned her around. Where Grayson was bulky and bear-like, Tyson was as lanky as a giraffe. His hair was even longer than Grayson's, tied back in a ponytail. It was a miracle it had made it through the summer un-attacked by their mother's scissors.

Tyson looked at Grayson. "Wasn't it inevitable? That she'd end up here?"

"Couldn't have put her anywhere else." Grayson smiled at her.

She beamed back at them. Somehow it had felt like more than hours since she'd last seen her brothers. They'd disappeared to join their friends in a compartment as soon as they'd arrived at the platform. Their mum had been annoyed but Erica had been glad of the freedom to find her own way around. But now they were sharing a house and Erica felt especially glad of that right now.

Rochelle and Felix both cleared their throats, eyeing the brothers with amusement. Grayson grinned back at them unashamed.

"If you could hold off from manhandling the first years, that'd be great," Felix quipped.

"Yes sir." Tyson gave him an enthusiastic salute. Felix simply grinned back and Rochelle smiled. Erica thought she saw a slight blush in her cheek. It was fairly clear against her ivory skin.

"Right, girls, follow me." Rochelle instructed them. "I'll show you to your dormitories."

Once she was sure the girls were all behind her, she began to lead them towards a staircase at the end of the common room. It spiralled upwards towards a small landing overlooking the common room. There was a doorway to each side. Rochelle led them through the door on their left. "This is the girls' part of the tower," she explained. There was another short climb up a second spiral staircase before they came to a doorway immediately ahead of them. Rochelle opened it and the group walked into a fairly large room with five four posted beds, each with crimson drapes. At the foot of each bed sat their trunks and their pet baskets. Erica was delighted to notice that her bed was next to Lily's. There was another doorway to the side leading to a bathroom. Erica looked inside. There were two toilet cubicles, two sinks and two shower cubicles.

"As you're first years, you'll be on the first floor this year but every year your bedroom will move up a floor as you progress through the school," Rochelle explained. "Please be careful with your own belongings. The boys aren't able to come up here," she commented as a mischievous smirk crept onto her features. "They can try but… well I won't spoil the fun for you girls," she said. "Put it this way, your belongings are safe here provided none of you are thieves." A small, appreciative chuckle ran through the girls. Erica was half tempted to suggest trying to invite that Potter kid up here. It'd serve him right for being a prat.

"Now do you have any questions?" Rochelle asked.

"Do we have a curfew?" Erica asked. She saw Rochelle smile a bit more.

"Only in the Tower, not the bedrooms. You're not to be out of the Tower past ten o'clock on weekdays and eleven o'clock on weekends. This does go up once you're in fifth year," she said. "But the curfew is just as much about making sure you get plenty of rest as it is to stop you getting into trouble," she continued consolingly.

Erica nodded. Ten o'clock, huh? That wasn't bad.

"No other questions," Rochelle asked. When no more questions were forthcoming, she swept out of the room, leaving all the girls alone in the room together.

They each moved to their bed and trunk and began to unpack a little. They changed into their pyjamas and nightgowns. Erica brought out Anastasia and put some cat treats out for her as well as filling up a bowl of water for her. Once she was done, she climbed into bed, Anastasia curling up at the foot of the bed, her usual place. Next to her, Lily was climbing in too. She nestled into the covers and smiled over at Erica's cat.

"She's lovely," she said. "My owl's been taken to the Owlery," she said picking up a note on her bedside table and holding it up. "He's called Icarus," she added.

"After the Greek story?"

"Yep," Lily said. "He's always flying too close to light bulbs or the fire," she chuckled. "He's going to scorch his wings one of these days."

Erica laughed. "He sounds funny."

Lily smiled. "He is." She looked around the room.

The other three girls had climbed into their own beds but no one had drawn the curtains back yet. Erica recognised them all from the Sorting of course but she could only remember the name of the dark haired girl Alice who was in the bed on the other side of Erica. Next to her was a golden haired thin girl whose eyes kept darting to everyone else. On her other side was a more relaxed looking girl with auburn hair and a tanned complexion, sitting up in the middle of the bed. She had large eyes that were looking out of the nearest window quite dreamily.

"Those boys," Lily suddenly remarked looking at Erica, "were they your brothers?"

"Yep," Erica laughed.

"You all look really alike," Alice said.

"Everyone says that," Erica said as she folded her hands behind her head. "We all look like our mum."

"Your dad's the odd one out?" the auburn haired girl asked, looking over at Erica.

"I dunno. He left us after I was born," Erica shrugged. She felt a painful sting in the back of her throat and made a note to change the subject.

"Oh," the other girl said. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay. Can't miss what you never knew right?"

"Right," the girl said with some conviction. "For me it was Mum who left so… I kinda get it. I was about six months. Anyway," she said puffing herself up a bit, "it doesn't matter. Dad did a good job looking after us. I'm guessing that was your mum?"

"Yeah. We never missed out, I don't think." Erica said.

The other girl nodded and smiled. "I'm Alexandra by the way.."

"Erica." Erica said.

"Lily," Lily answered when Alexandra looked at her.

"Alice," Alice spoke up.

"Nanaia," the golden haired girl said quietly.

"Nice to meet you all," Alexandra declared. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm knackered," she flopped back down on the bed and the other girls laughed softly.

"Me too," Alice yawned. "I've been up since six, I was so excited."

Erica yawned at the same time as Lily. Anastasia joined in on the yawn fest.

"Well," Erica said, "goodnight then."

There was a sleepy chorus of goodnights and then nothing more was said. Everyone drew the curtains around their beds. Erica slipped into dreamland as soon as she lay back.


End file.
